Adhesive coated strips such as labels, bandages, transdermal patches, and the like are commonplace. Prior to application to a desired surface by a user, the adhesive coated strips are generally provided with the adhesive coating protected from contamination and inadvertent attachment to itself or to an undesired surface by some sort of treated release paper or plastic release film, which will subsequently be referred to as the release strip. Prior to use, the user separates the release strip from the adhesive coated strip, exposing the adhesive coating The strip is then ready for the intended adhesive strip application. However, separating the adhesive coated strip from the release strip can be a frustrating process and may lead to damage to the adhesive coated strip, especially at the edge where the user attempts to initiate the separation, typically employing a fingernail or sharp instrument. This is often the case with pressure sensitive adhesive products such as labels and, recently, self adhering postage stamps. The quality and ease of removal of the strip from the release material is often a function of the condition of the user's fingerails.
In situations where a particular adhesive coated strip is stiffer than its adjoining release stip, the release strip may be sharply creased near an edge of the adhesive coated strip causing the that edge of the adhesive coated strip to separate away from the release strip. The user may then grasp the exposed edge of the adhesive coated strip and continue to separate the same from the release strip.
However, as is often the case, the release strip is stiffer than the adhesive coated strip. To address this problem, manufactures of some adhesive coated strips include means to facilitate separation of the adhesive coated strip from the release strip. For example, common home bandages have two plastic film or coated paper release strips that cover both the adhesive and the gauze portion of the bandage. The two release strips typically overlap near the center of the bandage, over the gauze portion where there is no or substantially less adhesive coating. The release strips may further be provided with tabs to further enhance acquisition of the ends of the release strips by the fingers of the user. The user is thus able to acquire the interior ends of the release strips and separate the same from the bandage for application to, for example, a wound site.
Another means that is used to facilitate removal of an adhesive coated stip from a release strip is to process the release strip to include lines of frangibility. This, technique is common with pressure sensitive adhesive labels. To remove the label from the frangible line release strip, a user folds the adhesive coated label and release strip laminate at an indicated line of frangibility causing the release strip to crack along the indicated line, thus presenting edges of the release strip which the user may grasp to further remove the release strip from the pressure sensitive adhesive label.
Other applications of adhesive coated strips wherein the adhesive coating is a relative thick viscous and tacky gel have been introduced into common use. For example, such applications include transdermal patches, electrocardiogram electrodes, and teeth whitening strips. For comfort, such strips are preferably thin films so as to be compliant with the attached surface. This creates a special challenge for removal of such adhesive coated strips from their respective release strips.
Another issue is the question of disposal of the residual release strip. Means that facilitate removal of the adhesive coated strips from the release strip often result in multiple pieces of release strip, some of which may be small and easily misplaced. As should be obvious, in medical circumstances and with oral applications, the number of pieces and physical size of residual release strip is an important issue. It is preferred to reduce the number of such pieces and to avoid small pieces.
What is needed is a simple low cost means that facilitates removal of the adhesive coated strip from the release strip, wherein the release strip is used to provide protection to the adhesive coating prior to application of the adhesive coated strip, e.g., a bandage, transdermal patch, or whitening strip for teeth, and wherein the release strip is maintained in a unitary condition after removal of the adhesive coated strip. It is further needed that the means for facilitating removal of an adhesive coated strip from its adjoining release strip be conducive to efficient converting processes.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved release strip which facilitates its removal from an adhesive coated strip and for such release strip to retain a unitary condition after removal from the adhesive coated strip.